Vehicle systems, such as automobiles, mining equipment, rail vehicles, over-the-road truck fleets, and the like, may be operated, at least in part, by vehicle control systems. These vehicle control systems may perform under the manual instruction of an operator, may perform partly on manual input that is supplemented with some predetermined level of environmental awareness (such as anti-lock brakes that engage when a tire loses traction), or may perform entirely autonomously. Further, the vehicles may switch back and forth from one operating mode to another.
The vehicle system may not be used efficiently if the path over which it travels is in disrepair. For example, a train (including both a locomotive and a series of rail cars) may derail if the rails are not within designated specifications. Railroads may experience many derailments per year. In addition to the repair work to the rails, the resulting costs include network congestion, idled assets, lost merchandise, and the like. At least some derailments may be caused by, at least in part, faults in the track, bridge, or signal and in the mechanical aspects of the rail cars. Contributing aspects to derailments may include damaged or broken rails and wheels.
To reduce or prevent derailments, it has been prudent to conduct a periodic visual inspection of the track and of rail cars while in rail yards. Additionally, technology has been introduced that uses ultrasonic detection and lasers that may be mounted on hi-rail vehicles, track-geometry test cars, and wayside detectors (every 24 kilometers to 483 kilometers apart) that monitor freight car bearings, wheel impacts, dragging equipment, and hot wheels. This approach relies on the ability to maintain the track to be within tolerances so that operating a vehicle system on that track can be done in a consistent manner.
Various freight movers have introduced the use of unmanned vehicle (“drone”) technology to inspect right of ways or routes. These drones are equipped with at least visible light cameras, but may be equipped with more advanced LIDAR systems if certain technical challenges are overcome. The image payload is delivered to human reviewers for determination of the route status. It may be desirable to have a system that differs from those that are currently available.